Support for flexible conduits on railway cars



June 8, 1943. E. sTENzEl. ET AL.

SUPPORT FOR FLEXIBLE CNDUITS 0N RAILWAY CARS Filed April` 20, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet l June 8, 1943. E. s'lrENzEL E1-Al.

SUPPORT FOR FLEXIBLE CONDUITS ON RAILWAY CARS.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 20, 1942 June 8, 1943. E; sTENzEL ET Ax. 2,321,434

SUPPORT FOR FLEXIBLE CONDUITS ON RAILWAY CARS Filed April 2o, 1942 s sheets-sheet s Patented June 8, 1943 UNITED STATES 'PATE-Nr *orties SUPPORT FOR FLEXIBLE CONDUITS ON RAILWAY CARS Emil Stenzel and John J. Yindrock, Chicago, Ill., assignors to Vapor Car Heating Company, Inc., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of New York Application April 20, 1942, Serial No. 439,716 3 Claims. (Cl. 248-53) This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in a support for a flexible conduit on a railway car. As is Well understood, the adjacent cars of the railway train are provided with couplers which are detachably connected together so that the push or pull from one car may be transmitted to the next adjacent car. On certain types of cars there are similar fluid-transmitting pipes on each car which are provided with flexible connections at their ends adapted to be connected together so that the cars may follow curves without interfering with the continuous transmission of iluids from one car to the next. For example, there is a main steam train-pipe on each car, these train pipes being exibly connected by suitable conduit sections. In a similar manner, compressed air pipe lines are connected at the adjacent car ends.

These flexible conduit sections are suitably suspended at the relatively fixed ends of the car pipes, but additional supporting means are often provided for intermediate sections of these ilexible conduits, particularly when these ilexible conduits are quite heavy. The flexible extensions of steam pipes are now often made of relatively rigid metallic or partially metallic sections articulated together by suitable universal joints.

These sections are of considerable size and weight and flexible suspending means are often provided between certain of these sections and superposed portions of the car or the car-coupling means. The present invention relates to a new and improved form of such supporting means.

In the present example, each car is provided with a coupler at the end of a draw-bar swinging about a pivotal connection beneath the car so that the car coupler has a limited arcuate movement between the adjacent end portions o the cars, means being provided for detachably connecting the couplers so that a substantially continuous draw-bar is provided connecting the two cars. Flexible link supports suspend the free end portions of the flexible steam conduits (which are provided at their free ends with suitable coupling members) beneath the larger and stronger carcouplers hereinabove described. Additional link supports are provided for intermediate sections of the exible conduits, these additional supports being suspended at their upper ends on trackways provided beneath relatively xed portions of the car bodies adjacent to but not sharing the lateral swinging movement of the car couplers. Since the intermediate sections of the flexible conduit structures must move both longitudinally and laterally in a substantially horizontal plane with vconduits and associated with a portion rel-ation to the cars themselves, when the cars are passing around a curve,the trackways for these intermediate link supports are so positioned as to permit the links to maintain a substantially vertical positionas the flexible conduit sections move bodily in a longitudinal direction. This properly distributes the tension and reduces wearv in the flexible conduits and improves the easy and flexible operation of these heavy parts.

The principal object of this invention is to vide an improved form of supporting means for a flexible conduit section as briefly described hereinabove and disclosed more in detail in the specicatlons which ollow.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description or kone approved form of this apparatus. v

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of the adjacent end portions of a, pair of connected cars, showing the connected car couplers, and the cennected :flexible conduit sections on the adjacent cars.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of one of the ilegible parts. l plan view of one of the conduits, of oneof the car-couplers shownin dotted lines, thivew being taken substantially on the line 3-.3 `of Fig. 2.l i

Fig. 4 is an elevation of the improved supporting link and a portion of the trackway therefor.

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of this link taken at right angles to Fig. 4.

In Fig. l', a pair of similar cars A and B are `indicated in outline while passing around a curve, the cars being connected by the coupler bars C and C provided with connected coupler heads D and D. The couplers are pivotally connected on vertical axes beneath the respective end portions of the oars substantially at the points a and a' so that the coupler bars form substantially straight line extensions of one another and the connected coupler heads will swing from one side to the other of the center line of the train as the adjacent cars pass around a curve.

On each car there is a similar steam train-line I which extends from end to end of the car and from which the heating equipment on the car is supplied. Usually this train line receives its steam from the source at the locomotive. Each end of this lpipe I terminates in an end train pipe valve 2 which is suitably supported by a bracket member 3 on the car. The valve at the end of the train will be closed, but the train pipes on any Fig. 3 -is a adjacent cars of the train will be connected by flexible conduits E and E and the valves 2 will be opened to permit a continuous circulation of steam throughout the length of the train.

Each of the conduit members (for example E) comprises an inner section 4 which extends inwardly and downwardly toward the center line of the car and which is suspended at 5 beneath the valve 2 so as to connect with the steam line. The other end of pipe section 4 is adapted to swing in a substantially horizontal plane about an arc extending vertically through the'end valve 2. A second pipe section 6 extends substantially horizontally parallel to the center line of the car and is provided with a headportionl'l 'at its .inner end which extends upwardlyat 'and is pivotally connected with the downturned end 9 of the Afirst central portion of the shackle 22, the upper arms vof which are connected by a pin 23 carrying the roller or trolley 24 which slides along the guiderod I5. The supporting link G thus serves to support the connected end portions of the conduit sections 4 and 6 while permitting these pivotally connected conduit sections to swing beneath the end portions of the car substantially around the vertical axis of the end train-pipe valve 2. The outwardly extending end of section 4 swings in a substantially horizontal plane about this axis, whereas the section 6 moves llbodily lengthwise substantially in the direction of the longitudinal center line of the car. The trolley 24 and supporting rod I5 permit the supporting mechanism G to move with the conduit sections so that the link will remain substantially vertical. The proper tension and inclination of section 4. The outer end of the` pipe'sectionl 6 carries a coupler head I0 adapted t0 mate with a similar head Ill on the other conduit member E' whereby the steam connections between the adjacent cars are completed.4 A spring supporting member Il, of knowntype, is connected at its lower end to a collar I2 on the conduit 6, and is connected at its upper end by a hook member I3 with a lug I4 projecting downwardly from the car coupler head D. The connected conduits 6 will normally extend longitudinally of the train substantially beneath the car couplers andparallel thereto, but when rounding a curve the couplers D will usually swing somewhat to one side or the other of the conduit sections 6, as indicated in Fig. 1. The swinging link members II permit these relative movements while at -the same time providing suitable supports for these end portions of the conduit members.

A second spring supporting member, -indicated generally at G is provided for guiding and suspending the intermediate sectionslof the conduit E. The intermediate portion of the drawbar C, directly back of the coupler head D and beneath the end of the car, is supported from a suitable coupler carrier F, fixedly carried by the end portion of the car. This carrier F extends beneath the coupler bar and supports the outwardly projecting bar and head to slide laterally as the car passes around a curve. A track-way or trolley-rod I5 is supported at its ends in any suitable manner beneath the carrier F so as to extend beneath this carrier at a'slight angle to the longitudinal center line of the car in a direction tangent to or substantially parallel to a tangent to the arc of swinging movement of the connected ends of the conduit sections 4 and 6. On the upper face of the head 'I at this inner end of the section 6 is secured a vertically extending plate I6 provided with a series of similar openings I1 sloping upwardly substantially in the plane of the section 4. A connecting link I8 has its upper hooked end I9 engaged with the lower hooked end of a spring link l2l), while the lower hooked end 2l of link I8 is engaged in one of the openings I'I. The upper end of spring link 2U is engaged with the downwardly looped able conduit, comprising a substantially vertithis link mechanism G can be adjusted by changing the connecting link I8 from one to another of the series of openings I'I in plate I6.

The supporting link mechanism G serves to intermediately support the flexible conduit mem- `bers E at all times, the tension being so distributed that unnecessary wear on the pivotally connected conduit sections will be avoided and the swinging and rotary movements of the parts will be facilitated.

We claim: l. Supporting means for a section of a movcally disposed link comprising an extensible spring, a plate fixed to the conduit, means for adjustably securing the lower end of the link to the plate, a trackway supported above and substantially in line with the path of movement of `the conduit section, and means freely movable along the trackway and supporting the upper end 4of the link.

2. Supporting means for a section of a movable conduit, comprising a substantially vertically disposed link comprising an extensible spring, a plate xed to the conduit, means forv adjustably securing the lower end of the link to the plate comprising a plurality of openings in the plate, and a hook selectively engaging one of the openings, a trackway supported above and substantially in line with the path Yof movement of the conduit section, and means freely movable along the trackway and suporting the upper end of the link.

3; Supporting means for a section of a movable conduit, comprising a substantially vertically disposed link comprising an extensible spring, a plate xed to the conduit, means for adjustably securing the lower end of the link to the plate, a trackWay supported above and substantially in line with the path of movement of the conduit section, and a roller suspending the upper end of the link and movable along the trackway.

EMIL STENZEL. 1 JOHN J. YINDROCK. 

